U.S. patent number 10,438,497 [Application Number 14/379,297] was granted by the patent office on 2019-10-08 for system and method for maintenance of competence.
This patent grant is currently assigned to Laerdal Medical AS. The grantee listed for this patent is LAERDAL MEDICAL AS. Invention is credited to Kenneth George Morallee, Clive William Patrickson.
United States Patent |
10,438,497 |
Patrickson , et al. |
October 8, 2019 |
System and method for maintenance of competence
Abstract
A medical training system is disclosed comprising a medical
simulation management module, a student record database having a
plurality of records relating to training of students, wherein the
student record database is connectable to the medical simulation
management module, at least one medical training module executable
on a training device and comprising scenarios for the training of
the students; and a data entry device for entry of student training
data to the student record database, the student training data
being indicative of performance of the students on using the at
least one medical training module.
Inventors: |
Patrickson; Clive William
(Goshen, NY), Morallee; Kenneth George (Orpington,
GB) |
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
LAERDAL MEDICAL AS |
Stavanger |
N/A |
NO |
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Assignee: |
Laerdal Medical AS (Stavanger,
NO)
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Family
ID: |
47714055 |
Appl.
No.: |
14/379,297 |
Filed: |
February 4, 2013 |
PCT
Filed: |
February 04, 2013 |
PCT No.: |
PCT/EP2013/052138 |
371(c)(1),(2),(4) Date: |
August 17, 2014 |
PCT
Pub. No.: |
WO2013/120720 |
PCT
Pub. Date: |
August 22, 2013 |
Prior Publication Data
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Document
Identifier |
Publication Date |
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US 20150010892 A1 |
Jan 8, 2015 |
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Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
Issue Date |
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61600101 |
Feb 17, 2012 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G06Q
30/018 (20130101); G09B 23/288 (20130101); G09B
9/00 (20130101); G09B 7/00 (20130101); G16H
10/60 (20180101); G09B 5/00 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
G09B
5/00 (20060101); G09B 9/00 (20060101); G09B
23/28 (20060101); G16H 10/60 (20180101); G06Q
30/00 (20120101); G09B 7/00 (20060101) |
Field of
Search: |
;434/265,267,262,322 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Foreign Patent Documents
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1999 H11-249543 |
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Mar 2001 |
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JP |
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2005-018365 |
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Jan 2005 |
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JP |
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2005118187 |
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May 2005 |
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JP |
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2007-114769 |
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May 2007 |
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JP |
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2009543611 |
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Dec 2009 |
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JP |
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2010-055068 |
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Mar 2010 |
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JP |
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2008059394 |
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May 2008 |
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WO |
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WO 2008008893 |
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Dec 2008 |
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WO |
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2009018334 |
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Feb 2009 |
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WO |
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2011060350 |
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May 2011 |
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WO |
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Other References
Wie Chen, et al., "Rythm of Life Aid (ROLA): An Integrated Sensor
System for Supporting Medical Staff During Cardiopumonary
Resuscitation (CPR) of Newborn Infants," IEEE Transactions on
Information Technology in Biomedicine, IEEE Service Center, Los
Alamitos, CA, US, vol. 14, No. 6, Nov. 1, 2010, pp. 1468-1474.
cited by applicant .
Jensen, M., et al., "Using e-learning for maintenance of ALS
competence," Resuscitation 80, 2009 pp. 903-908, Jun. 5, 2009.
cited by applicant .
Laerdal Product Information Bulletin 11-002, SimCenter, Apr. 19,
2011. cited by applicant .
M. Oermann, "HeartCode BLS with Voice Assisted Manikin for Teaching
Students," Teaching With Techonlogy/Basic Life Support, Sep./Oct.
2010, vol. 31 No. 5, pp. 303-308. cited by applicant .
Laerdal HeartCode PowerPoint, May 20, 2010. cited by applicant
.
Laerdal Advanced Video System. cited by applicant .
N. Mpotos, B. De Wever, N. Cleymans, J. Raemaekers, M. Valcke and
K. Monsieurs, "The power of assessment and feedback successful
individualized chest compression training in a self learning
station," Universiteit Gent (2012). cited by applicant .
N. Mpotos, S. Lemoyne, B. Wyler, E. Deschepper, L. Herregods, P.
Calle, M. Valcke and K. Monsieurs, "Training to deeper compression
depth reduces shallow compressions after six months in a manikin
model," Resuscitation 82 (2011) 1323-1327 (2011). cited by
applicant .
N. Mpotos, B. De Wever, M. Valcke and K. Monsieurs, "Assessing
basic life support skills without an instructor: Is it possible?"
BMC Medical Education 2012 12: 58. cited by applicant .
N. Mpotos, B. De Wever, N. Cleymans, J. Raemaekers, M, Valcke and
K. Monsieurs, "The power of assessment and feedback successful
individualized chest compression training in a self learning
station," Acta Clinica Belgica, 2012; 67-2. cited by
applicant.
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Primary Examiner: Saint-Vil; Eddy
Attorney, Agent or Firm: 24IP Law Group USA, PLLC DeWitt;
Timothy
Parent Case Text
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
This application claims benefit of and priority to U.S. Provisional
Patent Application No. 61/600,101 entitled "System and Method for
Maintenance of Competence" filed on Feb. 17, 2012.
Claims
The invention claimed is:
1. A medical training system comprising: a central administrative
module including at least one medical training module, wherein said
central administrative module is running on a computer; a student
record database having a plurality of records relating to training
of students, wherein the student record database is accessible by
the central administrative module; a data entry device for entry of
student training data to the student record database, said data
entry device comprising a monitoring sensor configured to monitor
performance of students on a training device and a patient in
real-life at a medical location, wherein said training device is a
manikin and wherein the student training data is indicative of
performance of the students of a medical procedure on the training
device and the patient in real-life, wherein the student training
data of the performance of the students of the medical procedure on
the training device and the patient in real-life is collected in
the student record database for evaluating the performance of the
students of the medical procedure on the training device and the
patient in real-life, wherein the evaluation comprises comparison
of the student training data indicative of performance of the
students of the medical procedure on the training device and the
patient in real-life with specific requirements depending on an
education level of the student, current requirements of the
student, and current requirements of the medical location and
wherein the training device provides feedback to the central
administrative module on whether the students require further
training; wherein the at least one medical training module is
executable on the training device and comprises scenarios for the
training of the students, wherein only a required one of the at
least one medical training module is identified and loaded onto the
training device depending on the evaluated performance of the
students of the medical procedure on the training device and the
patient in real-life; and a certification database configured to
issue and monitor certifications of the students, wherein a
certification is issued on completion of only the required at least
one medical training module.
2. The medical training system of claim 1, wherein the data entry
device is operable by one of an invigilator or an instructor.
3. The medical training system of claim 1, further comprising a
patient record database connectable to the medical simulation
management module.
4. A computer-implemented method for training a student in a
medical procedure comprising: determining student requirements;
loading an appropriate one of at least one medical training module
onto a training device, wherein said training device is a manikin;
recording a real-life situation by placing a recording device
proximate to the training device and a patient in real-life at a
medical location; and recording a performance of the student in
performing the medical procedure on the training device and the
patient in real-life to provide feedback to a central
administrative module whether the student requires further
training, wherein said central administrative module is running on
a computer; recording student training data, wherein the student
training data is indicative of performance of the student of the
medical procedure on the training device and the patient in
real-life; collecting the student training data in a student record
database; evaluating by the central administrative module whether
the performance of the student of the medical procedure on the
training device and the patient in real-life meet specified
requirements, wherein said specific requirements depend on an
education level of the student, current requirements of the
student, and current requirements of the medical location;
identifying and loading only a required one of at least one medical
training module executable on the training device depending on the
evaluated performance of the student of the medical procedure on
the training device and the patient in real-life; and issuing a
certification on completion of only the required one of the at
least one medical training module.
5. The method of claim 4, further comprising transfer of the
recording to a student record database.
6. The method of claim 4, wherein the issuing of the certification
comprises passing an electronic record of the certification to
another database.
Description
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The field of the invention relates to a medical training system, a
method for training students in medical matters and a computer
program product stored in a non-volatile memory and which when
executed on a general-purpose computer enables the general-purpose
computer to perform the method.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Medical training systems are known in the prior art. One example of
a medical training system is a medical simulation system, such as
those produced by the Laerdal Medical AS based in Stavanger,
Norway. Such medical simulation systems enable the training of
students in responding to the medical needs of patients by
simulating a medical emergency or other medical procedure. These
needs include, but are not limited to, casualty assessment,
emergency response, birthing, and cardiopulmonary resuscitation
(CPR). Cardiopulmonary resuscitation is an emergency procedure that
is performed in an effort to manually preserve intact brain
function, until further measures can be taken to restore normal
blood circulation and breathing to a patient.
The medical simulation systems often use manikins. The manikin is a
life-sized anatomical human model used as a teaching aid in medical
education for training students, for example doctors, nurses,
paramedics, as well as other learners in, for example, emergency
care and resuscitation of humans. A number of companies produce
manikins. For example, Laerdal, have produced manikins in various
forms since the 1960s. Generally, manikins are three-dimensional
models of all or part of a human being and are intended to be as
realistic as possible in order to provide the learners with a
realistic situation. The manikin can be used to instruct learners
using a so-called "training scenario". The training scenarios are
designed to be realistic simulations of medical emergencies that
might occur in real-life. An instructor can institute one or more
of the training scenarios and view how the learner responds to the
implemented training scenario.
More recently e-learning systems have been introduced. For example,
the Laerdal company has developed a self-directed, computer-based
course for obtaining basic life support certification and is
marketed under the trade name HeartCode.TM.. The HeartCode system
enables students to obtain certification and includes a local
database recording the names of the students who achieve
certification.
One of the issues involved with medical training is that students
need to refresh their knowledge (also termed competence) of the
medical simulation. Studies have shown that merely using e-learning
techniques for the maintenance of competence in medical skills has
been demonstrated to be not sufficiently adequate (see Jensen et al
"Using e-learning for maintenance of ALS competence, Resuscitation
80 (2009) 903-908). The Jensen et al. article concluded that the
use of an e-learning program in order to maintain or boost
competence in a medical school was inadequate. The primary factor
influencing these results was the lack of social interaction with
the patient.
A number of e-learning systems for medical simulation are known.
For example, Laerdal Medical offers a SimStore centre together with
the US Company HealthStream, Nashville, Tenn., which is an
e-warehouse that supports the distribution and sale of medical
simulation content. Further details of the SimStore and related
SimCenter product are included in the Laerdal product information
bulletin 11-002, dated 18 Apr. 2011. This product information
bulletin describes the global launch of the SimCenter product. The
medical simulation content in the SimStore is designed to be used
with training products and other medical simulation products, such
as those produced by the Laerdal Company.
The term student as used in this disclosure is not intended to
exclusively mean an undergraduate or college student who is
attending an MD course, a B. Med. course or similar. The term
"student" is also intended to apply to health-care professionals,
such as an already-qualified nurse, doctor or paramedic who
requires basic and refresher training to maintain his or her
competence. It will be appreciated that the term "student" is
therefore widely understood in the context of this disclosure to
mean those people undergo training using medical simulation
devices, e-learning or practical experience.
One of the issues involved in maintenance of competence in medical
procedure with a skilled person, such as a doctor, experienced
nurse or paramedic is the need to convince an experienced student
of the value of further or refresher training Many such experienced
students tend not to take medical training on medical simulation
devices seriously because they are involved in day-to-day instances
in which this medical training is put to practical use. As a
result, such students tend not to perform as well as expected on
such devices.
A similar problem is encountered with students who rarely, if ever,
are faced with a real-life medical emergency. Such "inexperienced"
students also tend not to take the training on the medical
simulation system as seriously as they should, because they do not
expect to need this training Such "inexperienced" students, as well
as other medical personal, tend also to regard such training on the
medical simulation systems as being of a lower priority than many
of their other tasks. The students therefore avoid going to a
specialised training unit, possibly based in another building or at
another location, in order to revive their competences and obtain
the necessary recertifications. For hospitals and other medical
services, the lack of certified personal can be an issue in a
medical emergency, particularly if there a later enquiry about the
competences of the personnel involved in the medical emergency.
In addition to a traditional medical simulation system, new types
of medical training systems and medical monitoring systems have
been introduced in order to monitor and evaluate students in
real-life situations. For example, US Patent Application
Publication No. US 2008/0312565 (assigned to the Board of Regents
of the University of Texas system, Austin, Tex. and Laerdal
Medical, Stavanger, Norway) describes a CPR sensor including a thin
and substantially flat flexible substrate having one or more sensor
arrays, a power source, an output interface, a processor or
analogue circuit incorporated into a credit-card flat flexible
substrate. The CPR sensor of the US '565 publication can be easily
carried in a wallet or other personal belonging or item of clothing
so that the CPR sensor can be located quickly during an emergency.
The CPR sensor is placed on or near to the hands of the person
administering CPR and is able to provide immediate feedback to the
person administering CPR to indicate that he or she is correctly
administering CPR. The incorporation of the output interface
enables a transfer of the real-life data to a database for further
evaluation at a later stage. The storage of the real-life data in
the database can be invaluable when reviewing the person's
competence in performing CPR and/or for evaluating the performance
of the CPR in the event that there is an enquiry or a lawsuit
related to the performance of the CPR.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
This disclosure teaches a medical training system comprising a
medical simulation management module and a student record database
having a plurality of records that relate to training of students.
The student record database is connectable to the medical
simulation module. At least one medical training module is
executable on a training device and comprises at least one or more
scenarios for training of the students. A data entry device is also
incorporated which allows the entry of student data to the student
record database. The student data is indicative of performance of
the students when using the at least one medical training module.
The medical training system also includes a certification database
which issues (including printing) certifications and further
monitors the expiry of such certifications.
The medical training system of this disclosure enables the
recording of medical training data and storage in a central
database. The medical training data is not merely indicative of
training on a medical simulation system, but also is relevant to
data gathered during a real-life performance of a medical procedure
on a patient. The medical training system of this disclosure
therefore provides a one-stop shop in which all relevant medical
training data including medical data gathered during monitoring of
the real-life performance is collected in a single database and the
student record database can be used to evaluate those areas of
medical practice in which the student may be weak. It will be
appreciated that the student record database includes not only data
from training scenarios performed on a manikin or other training
devices, but also records relating to the performance of the
student during a real-life emergency. Such collection of records
means that a student's performance in real-life can also be
reviewed and any necessary training be organised fairly quickly. If
the student is found to be performing a medical procedure correctly
in real-life, there is no need for him or her to have medical
training involving the use of simulators. This will save valuable
student time, and make the use of the medical simulators more
efficient.
In addition, the student record database enables the
recertification of students to be performed in a timely manner. The
medical training system can review the expiry dates of the existing
certification and review those areas in which the student is
under-performing (or has not recently performed) and automatically
set up an appointment for the student to undergo a scenario for
additional training and therefore the maintenance of
competence.
In one aspect of the invention, the training device could be a
personal computer, a smartphone or tablet device in order to
perform part or all of some of the medical training. It was noted
above, however, that Jensen and his colleagues (see Jensen et al
2009) had indicated that the use of e-learning is not adequate and
that therefore the training device should be additionally a manikin
or similar.
In a further aspect of the invention, the medical training system
can also incorporate or have access to a certification database
holding the certifications of the students. This certification
database can be connected to a national or international
certification database, as appropriate.
In one aspect of the invention, the medical training system is
further provided with a data entry device, which can be operated,
by an instructor or an invigilator. The data entry device is able
to record medical procedures being carried out by the student in
the certain circumstances.
In one further aspect of the invention, the data entry device
further comprises a monitoring card that is able to monitor the
performance of the student on a real-life patient during a
real-life emergency. The data entry device stores records relating
to the performance of the student during the real-life emergency
and, when connected later to the medical training system is able to
transfer this data through to the student record database for
analysis by the medical training system.
The disclosure also teaches a method for training a student in a
medical procedure and comprises determining student requirements,
for example by analysis of a student record database, and enabling
at least one of a medical training module on a training device or a
recording of a real-life situation. The results of the medical
training module or the recording of the real-live situation can be
evaluated so see whether the results meet specified requirements.
Such specified requirements include those set by law or by
individual standard and/or certification bodies. If such results do
meet the specified requirements then a certification for the
student can be issued. Alternatively, the student may be required
to undergo further training.
DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES
FIG. 1 shows an overview of the medical training system.
FIG. 2 shows a flow diagram of the method for training students in
medical matters.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
The invention will now be described based on the drawings. It will
be understood that the embodiments and aspects of the invention
described herein are only examples and do not limit the protective
scope of the claims in any way. The invention is defined by the
claims and their equivalents. It will be understood that features
of one aspect or embodiment of the invention can be combined with a
feature of a different aspect or aspects and/or embodiments of the
invention.
A medical training system 5 is shown in an architecture view in
FIG. 1. The medical training system 5 has a central administrative
module 10 that is running on a general-purpose computer, such as a
server. It will be appreciated that the central administrative
module 10 may be run as a local sever or a remote server or be part
of a module running on a cloud server. The central administrative
module 10 includes one or more medical training modules 15. The
medical training modules 15 include, but are not limited to
training scenarios with simulations of medical procedures such as
cardio pulmonary resuscitation (CPR) or other advanced life support
cases. It will be appreciated that many such training modules 15
are possible and that variations of the training modules 15 are
possible. For example, one of the medical training modules 15 may
include training scenarios relevant to an adult but a similar
medical procedure formed on an infant requires a different or
adapted medical training module 15 because of a different training
scenario.
A manikin device 20 is also connected to the central administrative
module 10. The connection between the manikin 20 and the central
administrative module 10 can be by cable and/or wireless, but is
not limiting of the invention.
A personal computer or other form of display terminal 30 is
connected to the central administrative module 10 by cable and/or
wireless. A student and/or an instructor can operate the personal
computer 30. The personal computer 30 enables access to the
training modules 15 running on the central administrative module 10
and will enable access to patient records 60, if the student or
instructor has sufficient access rights to enable access to this
private data. It will, however, be appreciated that laws governing
access to such data are extremely restrictive and thus the training
modules 15 may write data to such patient records 60, but rarely
allow access. It may be possible to allow access anonymously.
A data manager 40 is connected to central administrative module 10
by cable or wireless. The function of the data manager 40 is to
extract from the central administrative module 10 any relevant data
relating to performance of the student when using the medical
training modules 15. The data manager 40 can collect data from the
manikin 20 and/or from the personal computer 30. The data manager
40 can pass the data to the patient records database 60 (as
disclosed above) and/or write data into the student records
database 50 includes the names of the student, generally as entered
through the personal computer 30, and also any data relating to the
types of medical competence for which the student is trained as
well as expiry dates of certification requirements for a particular
medical competence. The student records database 50 also includes
verifiable keys that can be accessed by, for example, an employer
to verify any information and certify that the information is
genuine.
One illustrative example of such a certification is the requirement
in the United States to be regularly certified for CPR. The
certification for CPR can be obtained by running an appropriate one
of the training modules 15 on the manikin 20. The results of the
performance of the student on the manikin 20 are recorded by the
central illustrative module and passed through the data manager 40
to the student records database 50. The student records database 50
can then print an appropriate certification and/or by a printer 55
pass an electronic form of the certification to another
certification database. The other certification database could be a
centralised database recording nationwide the certifications.
The student records database 50 maintains a list of expiry dates of
the certifications of the medical competences for the students
recorded in the student records database 50 and/or on the central
administrative module 10. The student records database 50 is
therefore able to inform the student that the certification is
about to expire and to notify the student that such certification
can be performed. The student records database 50 can also inform
the student's employer of the expiry of the certification, if
appropriate to enable the employer to take appropriate action if
the student is no longer adequately certified. The notification
will take the form of an email generated by the certification
database 50 and then sent through an email system using an
appropriate interface, such as a MAPI (messaging application
programming interface) using a remote procedure call (RPC).
It will be noted that there is currently no US nationwide or other
central certification database provided. This may or may not be
introduced in future, as there are issues regarding
confidentiality.
The patient records database 60 is one of the most sensitive
databases and is generally protected by an additional isolation 70,
such as a firewall, to prevent unauthorised access. The patient
records database 60 is generally accessed only when a medical
procedure is performed on a real-life patient as opposed to a
performance of the training scenario on the manikin 20 and the data
relating to the performance of the student on the real-life patient
is incorporated into the central administrative module 10.
The introduction of a CPR sensor, such as disclosed in US Patent
Application Publication No. US 2008/0312565, enables data from the
real-life patient to be passed to the central administrative module
10 and incorporated into the certification database 50. For
example, an experienced student does not need to train on the
manikin 20 if the experienced student has performed sufficiently
well on the real-life patient, as evidenced by the data on the CPR
card 80. For this purpose, the CPR card 80 incorporates a card
memory for storage of data a data output device that enables
wireless transfer of the data stored on the card memory in the CPR
card to the central administrative module.
The card memory is in the form of an EEPROM connected to a serial
single-ended bus. The bus uses the I.sup.2C protocol (or similar)
for transferring the data internally within the bus. The wireless
transfer of the data is carried out using the ISO/IEC 15693
standard. The card memory stores data which includes, but is not
limed to, card life time use statistics including an overview of
all of the so-called "resuscitation episodes" that which the card
has been registered, together with a count of the number of times
for which the card has been used and the total amount of time
during which the card has been used.
Each use of the card in a training session and/or a real-life
emergency session is designated as a "resuscitation episode". The
card memory further includes individual episode statistics. In a
current implementation of the card, data relating to the sixteen
most recent resuscitation episodes is stored. It will be
appreciated that the limit on storage is arbitrary and depends on
the amount of storage available. Statistics relating to the
individual resuscitation episodes include, but are not limited,
compression depth, rate, compression in activity, how many of the
compressions lie within guidelines set by the American Heart
Association (or similar) as well as histogram data showing
distribution of depth, rates and inactivity for a number of the
individual episodes.
It will be noted that the CPR card include an accelerometer and a
timing device in order to ensure that the CPR procedure is
correctly carried out and to establish the data relating to the
compression depth and rate. Data from the accelerometer and the
timing device are stored in the card memory. The skilled person
will realize that the CPR card 80 is only one example of a data
entry device that can monitor the performance of the student on the
real-life patient. The teachings of the CPR sensor are disclosed in
US Patent Application Publication No. US 2008/0312565 and are
incorporated herein by reference.
A quality control system 90 is connected to the central
administrative module 10 for monitoring the quality of the
training. The quality control 90 will generally have access to
anonymous data from the central administrative module 10, i.e.
without access to the student's names or other identification
and/or the patient's names and/or other identifications.
It will be appreciated that the manikin 20 shown here does not need
to be placed in a central training unit. On the contrary, in order
to ensure that students are regularly trained the manikin 20 will
often be housed in a side room near a ward of a hospital. This will
allow the student to undertake regular medical training whenever it
becomes convenient for him or her. There is no need for the student
to register for a training course in order to obtain
recertification.
The advantage of having the manikin 20 near the student's work
place is also that the student can be instructed, for example by
email, to undertake regular refresh courses in order to maintain
his/her competence. The refresher courses are one example of the
medical training modules 15 and different refresher courses can be
given at different intervals.
The personal computer 30 will also enable the student to undertake
regular and continuous education on various aspects of medical
procedure. For example, the guidelines of the American Heart
Association on CPR have recently been updated. The central
administrative module 10 can inform the student about the update
and arrange for the student to arrange an appropriate one of the
medical training modules 50 in order to be updated on the revised
medical procedure. The central administrative module 10 can record
the student's completion of the training and provide feedback to
the student and/or the quality control 90 to enable important
action to be taken.
FIG. 2 shows a workflow according to one aspect of this disclosure
in which a student is required to undertake initial or updated
training in a medical procedure. In a first step 200, the student's
requirements are evaluated. The evaluation depends very much on the
educational level of the student and/or the current requirements of
the student and/or the hospital (or other medical location, such as
a doctor's surgery or emergency care vehicle). Once the student
requirements have been evaluated, In step 210, an appropriate one
of the training modules 15 for a required training scenario is
identified and loaded onto a training device. The training device
could be, in this aspect of the invention, the manikin 20 and/or
the personal computer 30. It was noted above that some of the
medical training modules 15 are appropriate only for use on the
personal computer 30 whilst others have functions that can only be
performed on the manikin 20.
In step 220 manikin 20 and/or the personal computer 30 record the
student's performance when performing the medical training module
15 and provide feedback to the central administrative module 10. In
particular this feedback can include whether the student requires
further training and/or has meet the requirements to obtain
certification which can be issued in step 230. In one further
aspect of the invention, an instructor or an invalidator has a data
entry device 25 that he or she uses to record the student's
performance and to pass details of the performance to the central
administrative module for review and recording.
It will be appreciated that the functions of the central
administrative module 10, the quality control 30 and the data
manger 40 overlap to a certain extent. These are generally
implemented as computer programs running on a general-purpose
computer and the instructions are stored on a non-volatile memory
device. It will be further appreciated that the components may be
implemented in different manner, depending on the general-purpose
computer system on which they are running.
In one further aspect of the invention the data entry device 25 may
be a code sheet completed by a nurse and logged in an appropriate
log. Any data from the log or code sheet can be transferred either
electronically or by manual entry to the central administrative
module 10.
One example of the data entry device 15 used in this disclosure is
the advanced video system developed by Laerdal and described in a
press release, dated 30 Mar. 2011.
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